With the flourishing development of computers these days, portable computers have become essential working and business tools for many people. Computer manufacturers have constantly reduced the size of portable computers. Now many portable computers are reduced to the size of notebooks and are almost as powerful as desktop computers. These notebook computers can be carried in attache cases or handbags to meet the requirements of business people anytime anywhere.
The biggest difference between notebook computers and desktop computers is their display devices. The display device on a notebook computer has to be small, light, thin and consume less electricity. Its manufacturing technology is much more complex than conventional display devices which use cathode ray tubes. In order to reduce costs, notebook computers generally are equipped with passive matrix type color display devices or active matrix type color display devices. The power supply for notebook computers is generally provided by NiMH or NiCd batteries. High end models can be coupled with Li-ion batteries, which have a longer service time span and no memory loss. Some types of batteries can last three to four hours. A few types can even last up to ten hours. For business people who have to travel frequently, those notebook computers offer great value as they can be used while traveling.
In order to make notebook computers convenient, most notebook computers have keyboards directly installed on the notebook computer main body. The keyboards thus constructed cannot be adjusted to a desired usage angle. As a result, their designs are not ergonomic for human operation, and tend to make people's hands fatigue easily. Although there are some detachable keyboards being developed, they are mainly for remote operation or become independent elements that are not restrictive to the notebook computer main body. In terms of ergonomics, there is still no effective design at present.